At IDI, Michael Helton has been hired as the new senior investments manager in the company's investment sales department. Helton has held executive posts in acquisitions and dispositions work at European American Realty and MetLife, and also was an underwriter at Reliant Professional Services Corp. and GMAC Commercial Mortgage. Helton will market IDI buildings for sale and handle asset management and underwriting responsibilities in the company's Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Los Angeles and Philadelphia regions.

In Florida, Greg Toepp has become IDI's vice president of construction and will work out of the company's newly opened satellite office in Lake Mary, 20 miles north of Downtown Orlando. Toepp will oversee all of IDI's construction projects in Central Florida. He comes to IDI from Skanska USA Building Inc., formerly Beers Construction in Orlando. He has also worked at McDevitt Street Bovis and has been active in Central Florida's commercial construction sector for 21 years.

At Wells Real Estate Funds, Jeff Gilder is the new managing director in Capital Markets division. Spencer Patton and Keith Willby move up to senior vice president positions in the acquisitions sector.

Gilder has been with Wells since 2002 and is credited by the company with closing $4 billion in acquisitions. His background includes investment management positions with Baita International, ING Investment Management and BVTG Institutional Investments.

Patton also joined Wells in 2002 as vice president of Midwest Region acquisitions. The company credits Patton with participating in $300 million of acquisitions in the past year. He began his career at Wachovia Bank and also worked at RedcoverDebt.com and the Walker Cos. in Atlanta.

Willby has held senior acquisitions positions at Wells since joining the firm in 2002. He participated in $350 million in transactions over the past 12 months. Willby previously worked at BVT Institutional Investments and ACG Professionals.